A tribute to a visionary realist of our times

There is an old Japanese proverb: "Vision without action is a daydream. Action without vision is a nightmare." Lee Kuan Yew was among the very few statesmen who not only were visionaries but also took action to turn their visions into reality.

He became the prime minister of Singapore in 1959 when it obtained full self-government from the British. At the time Singapore's population was 1.59 million and per capita GDP less than $400. When he voluntarily stepped down in 1990, Singapore was a different country, with a population of 3.07 million and per capita GDP of $11,845, a 30-fold increase.

Lee was free of any political dogma. His philosophy was to look at a specific policy and determine if it would work. If it was likely to work, Singapore tried it. If it worked, it was continued. If it did not, "we tossed it out and tried another one". This experimental ideology has served Singapore well.